Rupert Kinnard: Difference between revisions
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Kinnard was paralyzed from the waist down by an automobile accident in 1996.<ref name="qcenter"/><ref name="pqmonthly"/> |
Kinnard was paralyzed from the waist down by an automobile accident in 1996.<ref name="qcenter"/><ref name="pqmonthly"/> |
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He and his partner Scott Stapley were among the plaintiffs in ''Martinez vs. Kulongoski'' an unsuccessful 2008 court challenge against [[Oregon Ballot Measure 36 (2004)|Oregon |
He and his partner Scott Stapley were among the plaintiffs in ''Martinez vs. Kulongoski'' an unsuccessful 2008 court challenge against 2004's [[Oregon Ballot Measure 36 (2004)|Oregon Ballot Measure 36]], which defined marriage as the union of a man and a woman.<ref name="qcenter"/><ref name="martinezetal">{{cite web|url=http://www.publications.ojd.state.or.us/docs/A130818.htm|publisher=Judicial Department, State of Oregon|title=JUAN MARTINEZ et al. v. THEODORE R. KULONGOSKI et al.}}</ref> |
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In 2013 Kinnard received a "Standing on the Shoulders" Lifetime Achievement Award from the World Arts Foundation, which stated that his "artistic talent and leadership to reach out to the LGBTQ community honors the legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr."<ref name="qcenter"/><ref name="pqmonthly">{{cite news|title=Rupert Kinnard: A Superhero of His Own Making|url=http://www.pqmonthly.com/rupert-kinnard-a-superhero-of-his-own-making/22893|accessdate=1 February 2016|publisher=PQ Monthly|date=June 10, 2015}}</ref><ref name="cornellnews">{{cite news|title=Kinnard wins lifetime achievement award|url=http://news.cornellcollege.edu/2013/02/kinnard-wins-lifetime-achievement-award/|accessdate=1 February 2016|publisher=Cornell College|date=February 20, 2013}}</ref> He was a featured panelist at the first Queers & Comics conference in May 2015, as one of the "Pioneers of Queer |
In 2013 Kinnard received a "Standing on the Shoulders" Lifetime Achievement Award from the World Arts Foundation, which stated that his "artistic talent and leadership to reach out to the LGBTQ community honors the legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr."<ref name="qcenter"/><ref name="pqmonthly">{{cite news|title=Rupert Kinnard: A Superhero of His Own Making|url=http://www.pqmonthly.com/rupert-kinnard-a-superhero-of-his-own-making/22893|accessdate=1 February 2016|publisher=PQ Monthly|date=June 10, 2015}}</ref><ref name="cornellnews">{{cite news|title=Kinnard wins lifetime achievement award|url=http://news.cornellcollege.edu/2013/02/kinnard-wins-lifetime-achievement-award/|accessdate=1 February 2016|publisher=Cornell College|date=February 20, 2013}}</ref> He was a featured panelist at the first Queers & Comics conference in May 2015, as one of the "Pioneers of Queer Men's Comics" and a speaker on "Queer Comics, Health and Dis/Ability".<ref name="pqmonthly"/> |
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Kinnard and |
Kinnard and Stapley own and operate a guesthouse in Portland.<ref>{{cite web|title=Kinley Manor guest house|url=http://www.kinleymanor.com/|accessdate=2 February 2016}}</ref><ref name="windy"/> He is working on a graphic memoir, to be called ''LifeCapsule''.<ref name="windy"/> |
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==References== |
==References== |
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Revision as of 02:02, 11 March 2016
| Rupert Kinnard | |
|---|---|
| Born | Rupert Kinnard 1954 Chicago, Illinois |
| Nationality | American |
| Area(s) | Cartoonist |
| Pseudonym(s) | Prof. I.B. Gittendowne |
Notable works | B.B. and the Diva |
Rupert Kinnard (born 1954) also credited as Prof. I.B. Gittendowne,[1] is an openly gay African-American cartoonist, who created the first gay/lesbian-identified African-American ongoing comic-strip characters: the Brown Bomber (a teenage superhero) and Diva Touché Flambé (his lesbian partner).[2]
Biography
Rupert Kinnard was born in Chicago in 1954, and spent his early years living on the West Side. He moved with his parents and four sisters to a 16th-floor apartment in then-new housing projects, then to the South Side, where he attended Morgan Park High and later the Chicago Public Schools' High School for Metropolitan Studies. After graduating, he attended American Academy of Art.[3]
In 1976 he enrolled at Cornell College in Iowa, where he created the gay African-American character "Brown Bomber" in 1977; he was featured in his strip Cathartic Comics, published in the college newspaper.[2] He later created the character "Diva Touché Flambé". These characters – described by him as "a gay male superhero-slash-fairy with a lesbian partner" – were created in reaction to Kinnard's realization that not only were all of his favorite characters white, but even the comics characters he'd originally been creating himself were.[4] Brown Bomber was modeled after boxer Joe Louis (who was also known by that nickname).[3] A collection of Kinnard's strips was published in 1992 by Alyson Books as B.B. and the Diva.[5] The lead characters were also portrayed on stage in 1994, in Out of the Inkwell, a Theater Rhinoceros production in San Francisco, also featuring characters from Doonesbury.[1] The strip was carried in Outlines and several other gay publications, and was included in volumes of Meatmen.
He graduated from college in 1979, and moved to Portland, Oregon, where he began working for alternative newspaper Willamette Week as associate art director. In 1983 he cofounded Just Out, Oregon's first LGBT publication, which won the 1983 National Gay Press Association award for best overall design. He was the first African American to serve on the board of the Portland Town Council, the state's first LGBT organization, and helped to establish The Diversity Alliance, a multicultural LGBT group. He was art director of the San Francisco Sentinel when it received the 1987 National Gay Press Association award for best overall design. In 1993 he and six other men formed the Portland chapter of Brother to Brother, a social organization for African-American queer men.[1]
Kinnard was paralyzed from the waist down by an automobile accident in 1996.[1][4]
He and his partner Scott Stapley were among the plaintiffs in Martinez vs. Kulongoski an unsuccessful 2008 court challenge against 2004's Oregon Ballot Measure 36, which defined marriage as the union of a man and a woman.[1][6]
In 2013 Kinnard received a "Standing on the Shoulders" Lifetime Achievement Award from the World Arts Foundation, which stated that his "artistic talent and leadership to reach out to the LGBTQ community honors the legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr."[1][4][7] He was a featured panelist at the first Queers & Comics conference in May 2015, as one of the "Pioneers of Queer Men's Comics" and a speaker on "Queer Comics, Health and Dis/Ability".[4]
Kinnard and Stapley own and operate a guesthouse in Portland.[8][3] He is working on a graphic memoir, to be called LifeCapsule.[3]
References
- ^ a b c d e f Lynn, Logan. "Queer Heroes NW – June 11th, 2013 – Featured Hero: Rupert Kinnard". Q Center. Retrieved 1 February 2016.
- ^ a b Booker, M. Keith (Oct 28, 2014). Comics through Time: A History of Icons, Idols, and Ideas. ABC-CLIO. p. 599. ISBN 9780313397516. Retrieved 1 February 2016.
- ^ a b c d Baim, Tracy (2009-07-15). "The 'Diva' Comes To Life". Windy City Times. Retrieved 1 February 2016.
- ^ a b c d "Rupert Kinnard: A Superhero of His Own Making". PQ Monthly. June 10, 2015. Retrieved 1 February 2016.
- ^ Kinnard, Rupert (1992). B.B. and the Diva. Alyson Books. ISBN 9781555831349.
- ^ "JUAN MARTINEZ et al. v. THEODORE R. KULONGOSKI et al". Judicial Department, State of Oregon.
- ^ "Kinnard wins lifetime achievement award". Cornell College. February 20, 2013. Retrieved 1 February 2016.
- ^ "Kinley Manor guest house". Retrieved 2 February 2016.